U.S. President Barack Obama (L) walks with Chinese President Xi Jinping as he welcomes him the White House for an official State Visit in Washington September 25, 2015.

PHOTO: Reuters

President Xi Jinping stated China's commitment to building greater trust with the US and foreign investors when he met with US President Barack Obama on Thursday evening at Blair House, the state guest house in Washington DC.

Amid the tranquil and ornate surroundings, the leaders met for three hours and exchanged views on major issues such as governance and the China-US relationship.

On the divergences between the two countries, Xi said "the common interests of the two countries way outnumber the differences, and bilateral co-operation has always been the mainstream".

"In the next stage, the two sides should continue reinforcing high-level exchanges, expand co-operation, properly tackle differences, better guide opinions, maintain the good momentum of the evolving ties and lay solid foundations for Chinese development in the longer term," Xi said.

Obama referred to "the Thucydides trap", a term coined to describe when a rising power causes fear in an established power.

The US leader said he does not agree with such a trap, and major countries - especially the US and China - should try their best to avoid areas that could result in conflict.

Obama voiced confidence that the two countries have the capacity to successfully manage and control differences, and said competition between the two should be constructive.

When touching upon China's reform and opening up, Xi said: "China's open door will never be closed, and enterprises from abroad will enjoy circumstances of greater openness, less restraint and stronger transparency when they are investing and prospering in China."

Over the initiatives proposed by China, including those regarding "the Belt and Road" and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, Xi said such initiatives are all "open, transparent and inclusive". The initiatives "facilitate economic development, employment and poverty allevation of the relevant countries, and the various parties, including the US, are welcome to proactively participate", Xi said.

As for China's role in the global context, Xi said China is a participant, a builder, a contributor to the existing international system, and also a beneficiary of it.

"Reforming and perfecting the existing international system does not necessarily mean establishing one more (system) instead, but making it head even closer to fairness and reasonability," Xi said.

In a response, Obama said the US welcomes China's peaceful rise, and the two countries have successfully co-operated over climate change and the jointly tackled the Ebola outbreak in Africa.

As the world is being multi-polarised, emerging countries such as China deserve a greater say and representation within the international system, and the US expects China to play a greater role in the world, Obama said.

White House dinner to honour China’s President Xi Jinping

Shortly after his arrival in Washington DC, Xi went to the White House at the invitation of Obama.

The leaders then talked as they walked together to Blair House along Pennsylvania Avenue. Obama extended a warm welcome to Xi on his state visit to the US.

Xi said he was glad to visit, and his stop in Seattle was a pleasant journey that bore fruit.

"I expect to, through the state affairs activiin Washington DC, embark on in-depth exchange of views with you upon the bilateral relationship and issues of common concern, in order to reach more consensus and have more outcomes," Xi said.

US senior officials attending the meeting included US Vice-President Joe Biden and US Secretary of State John Kerry.

Xi noted that he and Obama agreed upon building a new type of relationship between major countries during their meeting in Annenburg, California, in June, 2013, and they had a long discussion at Yingtai in Beijing last November during Obama's state visit to China.

"Such in-depth communication is helpful to outlining directions for China-US relationship development and to injecting momentum into it," Xi said.